Welcome to 2014 Spring Frenzy

All of us at MCC (Mohave Community College) would like to welcome you to our wonderful lake Havasu City Campus to enjoy 2014 Spring Frenzy.

Please take a moment to also stop by our Library - where all members of our community are welcome to get a library card so that they can use all of the Library services...

Also remember that this weekend is"Winterfest" on McCulloch and we hope you will stop by and visit us at our booth (#300).

Enjoy your week and we welcome your feedback on all events you attend on our campus.

Happy New Year - Our computer classes begin January 7th, 2014

Happy New Year everyone – Hard to believe that the holidays have come and gone and that we are beginning a new year – 2014!!  Well next week we begin our new series of computer and technology related classes and look forward to working with all of you again.  Remember, these are your classes, so if there are topics that you would like us to cover, let us know...   You are always welcome to bring your laptops and other portable devices to class, or use our equipment - your choice.

As promised, I will be repeating our entire cycle of classes from January thru April to help you get more comfortable with your computer, mobile devices, eReader, iPhone, iPad, digital cameras; accessing the internet & your emails on your mobile devices & tablets; learn to use your great digital photos to create some gifts, slide shows or movies; join one of fun 4 hr. workshops and learn to keep all your documents and photos safe in the “clouds” with “cloud computing” or how to use Skype to make video calls to family anywhere in the world for free, but also a lot more fun and interesting classes in a wide variety of fun & interesting subjects - from genealogy, health, dance, painting, genealogy, sculpting and many more all year long...Visit the Mohave Community College website: www.mohave.edu; visit our campus at 1971 Acoma Blvd in Lake Havasu.. So check them out or Call Registration Register: Online, in person or call 928-453-1139 or 855-7812 - 25% discount for senior AZ residents over 62

Also stop by and visit our wonderful Hodel Library on campus; get a library card and have access to all of the library resources including use of our computer lab and printers, all of which are open to the public.   

Another great resource is the CRCC (Colorado River Computer Club) that meets the first Tuesday evening of every month, beginning at 6pm at the Mohave Community Library (in the KMart Plaza) - for more information check out their website www.crccaz.com.  Their first meeting of the new year will be held this Tuesday evening, January 7^th... During this months meeting, at 7pm, Bob Elgines
CRCC President & Editor, will talk about Windows Live Movie Maker

I'm attaching the January - April 2014 computer class schedule that you can print, or stop by and pick one up...and if you have any questions stop by the campus OR check the mohave.edu website OR call MCC OR email me and we will gladly help you find what you need – but the following are the classes I will be teaching in January:

Computers FOR THE FUN OF IT  ~ LSC062, 8:30am-12:20pm, Tues & Wed, Jan 7 & 8 - Two 4 Hour classes reviewing computer hardware, software, printing tips, keyboard shortcut tips, customizing desktop-changing backgrounds, create shortcuts, using quick launch bar, Start Menu, Task Bar, control panel & much more…

DIGITAL CAMERA BASICS ~ LSC100A, 1pm-4:50pm, Tues & Wed, Jan 7 & 8 - Two 4 hour classes-Intro to digital cameras; pixels, camera lingo, basic how to’s, move photo’s to your PC with memory card & memory card reader, organize photos on your PC using Windows Explorer; save photos to portable drives Bring your digital camera to class

LAPTOP, TABLET & eReADER BASICS ~ LSC102 8:30-12:20pm, Thurs & Fri, Jan 9 & 10 – Two 4 Hour classes We will help you learn to to use your eReaders, Tablet, Laptops, Notebooks, Netbooks and understand differences; also how to use "apps", how to download books & other media from libraries & stores, what accessories are needed, how to get around the internet & WiFi Basics, shortcuts, security & more. – Bring your laptop, tablet, eReaders if you have one

SOCIAL NETWORKs: fACEBOOK, tWITTER & bLOGGING ~ LSC080, 1pm-4:50pm, Thurs, Friday & Monday, Jan 9, 10 & 13 - Three “3” 4 hr classes introducing & discussing Social Networking, Including Facebook, Facebook’s Timeline; Privacy Settings;  Add/Change/Remove Photos-Posts-Friends, etc; Basics of Twitter & Smartphones; Basics of Blogging, posting, commenting; You’ll Create Your Own Blog; Templates; Add Ons: Links, Photos, Slide Shows, Blog Tools & more 

HOW TO SKYPE OR GOOGLE VOICE  ~ LSC103, 8:30-12:20pm, Saturday, Jan 11 - One 4 hour workshop learning how to use Skype and/or Google voice to make free phone calls & web calls worldwide from any pc or smartphone.. lots of tips

FIND/ORGANIZE WHAT’S ON YOUR PC ~ LSC068C, 8:30am-12:20pm, Mon & Tues, Jan 13 & 14 - Two 4 hour classes Using Windows Explorer to find what you’ve saved on your PC; organize your work, files & photo’s to find them quickly & easily.  Learn to back up your pc, photo & documents with portable flash & hard drives, memory cards and memory card readers..

WORD-CREATe GREAT LOOKING DOCUMENTS ~ LSC068B, 1pm-4:50pm,Tues, Wed & Thurs, Jan 14, 15 & 16 - Three "3" 4 hour classes-reviewing the basics to open, create, save documents; highlight; cut-copy-paste, set & change margins; create letters, envelopes, labels& use clip art, word art to enhance documents, invitations, how to work with tables to create schedules, resumes, questionnaires & flyers & lots of printing tips

PICASA PHOTO EDITING ~ LSC081, 8:30am-12:20pm, Wed, Thurs & Tues, Jan 15, 16 & 21 – Three “3”- 4 hr classes to learn to edit & print digital photo’s using Picasa (this is free Google software); learn to upload photo’s from your camera and/or scanner to the PC& learn to order prints online; how to create a quick movie with music or a wonderful collage; use Picasa online web albums; use face & geo tagging& learn to update your edited photos to a variety of vendors for printing and/or creating great gifts - Bring your digital camera to class

internet and it’s many uses ~ LSC 071, 8:30am-12:20pm, Wed, Thurs & Fri, Jan 22, 23 & 24 – Three “3”- 4 hr classes covering a variety of internet tips & lingo, such as ISP, browser, blogger, hashtags; when/why to use F5 & F11; website basics, hyperlinks, email basics & advanced including how to send and save attachments, copy hyperlinks, reply to, forward and file emails, using “Google& Bing” to search web, images, news; translating to & from different languages; blogging and much more

Excel (DATA MANAGEMENT) & Mail Merge ~ LSC069, 1-4:50pm, Wed, Thurs & Monday, Jan 22, 23 & 27 - Three “3”- 4 hr. classes covering how to create spreadsheets with data/lists & numbers (budgets, contact & other data lists) Workbook vs. worksheet; cells, columns, rows, auto-formats; margins, grid lines, sorting numbers & data & print basics; we will use Word to create a Mail Merge & print mailing labels with our contact list... Bring An Address Book Or Contact List To Class

MOVIE MAKER ~ LSC100A, 1-4:50pm, Friday & Saturday, Jan 24 & 25 - Two “2”- 4 hr. classes covering how to create "movies" with your digital photos, music & other special effects: transitions, titles/credits, your favorite music, timeline narration, and much more.  This software is free with Windows XP, Media, Vista and/or Windows 7 …Bring Photos To Class (On Your Camera Or Flash Drive)

POWER POINT ~ LSC069D, 8:30-12:20 Saturdays, Jan 25 & Feb 1 Two “2”- 4 hr. classes covering how to use your digital photos to create Slide Shows; enhance your slide shows adding text, photos, clip art, music,  animation, transition, timing, etc; and save slides as photos..  Bring Photos To Class (On Your Camera Or Flash Drive)

USE DIGITAL PHOTOS & TEXT TO CREATE & PUBLISH YOUR OWN BOOK & OTHER GREAT GIFT IDEAS ~ LSC100K, 8:30-12:20 Mon,Tues & Wed, Jan 27, 28 & 29 – Three “3”  4 hr classes to Learn to create & publish your own book, using free book publishing software from Walgreens & CVS as well as blurb.com (for a book that’s copyrighted) using your WP skills& digital photos and learn in quantities as small as just one.  You decide: soft or hard cover, various sizes, all text, all photos or a combination of photos & text, story book or recipe book.. Bring photos to class (on camera or flash drive)

HOW TO BUY & SELL ONLINE ~ LSC 101, 1pm-4:50pm, Tues & Wed, Jan 28 & 29 - Two 4 hour classes to help you get more comfortable “Buying & Selling” on Line, find what you want; searching, making travel arrangements, shopping tips, intro to online sales with sites such as eBay; eBid; craigslist & others: shortcuts & security tips

HOW TO USE CLOUD COMPUTING  ~ LSC 045 ~ 8:30-12:20 Thursday, January 30 - One 4 Hour Workshop so that you can begin accessing your emails, photos, documents, music and more from any of your computer devices-such as your pc, laptop, tablet or smartphone - learn to use the clouds so that all of these features will travel with you..  This class will help you get comfortable understanding "Cloud Computing" including Google Drive; SkyDrive; Apple Cloud & Dropbox-understand which are free & which charge; learn to "store/upload" your important documents, photos, music & videos in the "clouds" to access anywhere, anytime with any device..  Bring your devices with you to class...

WINDOWS 7 & 8 OPERATING SYSTEM ~ LSC 100, 1-4:50pm, Thursday, Jan 30 – One 4 hour workshop helping you get more comfortable with Windows 7 & 8 and the many Features & Improvements (vs XP-Vista), such as Desktop customizing; Use Libraries to manage files; Jump Lists vs Task Bar or put taskbar back; Run apps; Shuffle wallpaper & screen savers; System Tray; Media Player; Alerts vs action centers & more  - You are always welcome to bring your laptop, but this is especially true if you are using Windows 8.

Check out one of these other great websites, to find out what's happening around town...

• www.golakehavasu.com
• www.facebook.com/lakehavasucityarizona

If you are thinking about taking one of my classes, or any class at MCC, be sure to register ASAP.. We don't want you to show up for a class, thinking you'll register after the class, only to learn the class was postponed due to low enrollment.. If something comes up and you can't attend we can move your class or refund your money...

Email me anytime with your questions or suggestions..

Thank you to all Veteran's and their families

We don't change our clocks in Arizona this evening

Just a reminder - that in most of the United States, before everyone goes to bed they will be setting their clocks back for Sunday morning, November 3rd at 2am, Daylight Savings Time will end as they all revert back to Standard Time.

Several states, including those of us here in Arizona (except some Indian Reservations), Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa have chosen not to observe Daylight Saving Time so none of us change our clocks at anytime during the year.

In almost all cases, computers, cell phones and cable boxes will make this change automatically without our help..

Even though here in Arizona we don't change our clocks, this is always a great time to change the batteries in our smoke and carbon monoxide alarms

Those who observe daylight savings, will then move their clocks ahead to begin Daylight Savings Time "1 hour" at 2am on the 2nd Sunday in March, March 9th, 2014  

So remember if you cross the river to California or head up to Las Vegas, it will be an hour earlier!!

Reminder-Colorado River Computer Club Meeting-Tuesday, Nov. 5th 6pm

We want to remind all of you in Lake Havasu City and surrounding communities that the next meeting of the Colorado River Computer Club will be held next Tuesday evening, November 5th at 6pm.

Meetings begin at 6pm on the first Tuesday of every month in Community Room B of the Mohave County Library in Lake Havasu City, AZ.  The New Users Group meets at 6:00 pm and this month, Bill Young; will be discussing digital photography, so get your list of questions ready (remember, time is short so all questions & answers will be generic and not specific to any one model/manufacturer's camera).

At 7pm Dale Gibson, Benefits Counselor from WACOG (Western Area Council Of Governments) www.wacog.com will be present to discuss the many changes facing you in the coming cycle for you prescription drug plans. If you have question you may want to have a list or your current  prescriptions and the name of your insurance carrier.

This Computer Club is a non-profit organization established to aid members in achieving better results from their computers. It is not connected with any commercial or private business.  Each month there is a guest speaker and you will have an opportunity to ask questions...

For more information, visit their website:  www.crccaz.com , which we have listed on the left column of our blog under "Student Favorites" for future reference...

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday evening, December 3^rd 

WINDOWS 8.1 IS AVAILABLE AS A FREE DOWNLOAD TODAY

If you haven't heard the announcement yet - Microsoft released the new Windows 8.1 update/upgrade today.

It is a free upload for any of you who are using Windows 8 on your computers, laptops or tablets...

Here is a link to the MSN website that made the announcement this morning and clearly outlines many of the issues addressed with this update/upgrade.....

http://money.msn.com/investing/news.aspx?feed=AP&date=20131017&id=17008390

This update is specifically designed to address many of the gripes people have had with Windows 8, the dramatically different operating system that attempts to bridge the divide between tablets and PCs.

So again, this Window 8.1 update is free for current owners of Windows 8; downloads started at 7 am this morning in New York, which corresponded to the start of Friday in New Zealand.

Simply go to the Windows Store app to find it.  Here is the link for their app store if you don't have it in your favorites...

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/apps#Cat=t1

As they noted in their MSN announcement  "it may take a few hours for updates to reach everyone. Computers with Windows 8.1 already installed will go on sale Friday local time. That's also when people will be able to buy stand-alone copies of Windows 8.1."

October Computer related classes at MCC - Come join us

On behalf of all of us at MCC, I hope you all had a healthy and enjoyable summer and no matter where you traveled, that you did it safely..  I'm sure you'll agree that it's hard to believe that it's already fall and time for me to begin another new season of classes..   

As promised, we intend to repeat our entire cycle of classes from October into May 2014.  Based on  many requests we received, we modified several classes which are now 12 hrs. long/, including Internet Basics & Advanced and Email; Word including working with tables; Excel including doing Mail Merges for letters and mailing labels and of course our Picasa Photo Editing, Facebook, Twitter & other Social Media, and the very popular Creating books & other great gift ideas with your text & digital photos - All are Twelve (12) hours, so three "3" 4 hour sessions.  We also added a few new classes including one 4 hour workshop for "cloud computing" which is so popular with all of our RV'ers and brought back our popular 4 hour workshop in November to create those fun "Santa & Holiday Letters".  Cassuandra Pham will continue to teach a variety of Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod and Android Smartphone & Tablet workshops and classes..  

Everyone in our community is welcome to take advantage of our wonderful Hodel Library on campus.. Stop by and get a library card, feel free to use our computers and bring your own paper and print what you need.  Pam Galovich and her library staff are wonderful and will answer your questions so stop by and visit them.... and remember, MCC offers many other great classes in a wide variety of fun & interesting subjects - from genealogy, health, dance, painting, genealogy, sculpting and many more all year long...Visit the Mohave Community College website: www.mohave.edu; visit our campus at 1971 Acoma Blvd in Lake Havasu.. So check them out or Call Registration 928-855-7812

As always, if you are thinking about taking any class at MCC, be sure to register ASAP.. We don't want you to show up for a class, thinking you'll register after the class, only to learn class was postponed due to low enrollment.. So try to register, and if something comes up and you can't attend we can move your class or refund your money...  And remember you are always welcome to bring your laptop to any of my classes... 

The Colorado River Computer Club meetings have resumed for the new season.  They are open to the public and held the first Tuesday of each month at the Mohave County Library - 1770 McCulloch Blvd, Room B (K-Mart parking lot area)... Next meeting is Tuesday evening, November 5th - New Users Group with the Groups Vice President, Larry LaRue, meets at 6pm and the Guest Speaker begin at 7pm..  These meetings are open to the public and very worthwhile... Visit their website: www.crccaz.com

The following is our schedule for October ~ so be sure to stop by the campus OR check the mohave.edu website OR call MCC OR email me and we will gladly help you find what you need... 

Computers FOR THE FUN OF IT  ~ LSC 062-121, 8:30am-12:20pm, Tues& Wed, Oct 8 & 9 - Two 4 Hour classes reviewing computer hardware, software, printing tips, keyboard shortcut tips, customizing desktop-changing backgrounds, create shortcuts, using quick launch bar, Start Menu, Task Bar, control panel & much more…  

DIGITAL CAMERA BASICS ~ LSC 100A-121, 1pm-4:50pm, Tues & Wed, Oct 8 & 9 - Two 4 hour classes-Intro to digital cameras; pixels, camera lingo, basic how to’s, move photo’s to your PC with memory card & memory card reader, organize photos on your PC using Windows Explorer; save photos to portable drives Bring your digital camera to class  

LAPTOP, TABLET & eReADER BASICS ~ LSC 102-121, 8:30-12:20pm, Thurs & Fri, Oct 10 & 11 – Two 4 Hour classes We will help you learn to to use your eReaders, Tablet, Laptops, Notebooks, Netbooks and understand differences; also how to use "apps", how to download books & other media from libraries & stores, what accessories are needed, how to get around the internet & WiFi Basics, shortcuts, security & more. – Bring your laptop, tablet, eReaders if you have one 

SOCIAL NETWORKs: fACEBOOK, tWITTER& bLOGGING ~ LSC 080-121, 1pm-4:50pm, Thurs, Friday & Tuesday, Oct 10, 11 & 15 - Three “3” 4 hr classes introducing & discussing Social Networking, Including Facebook, Facebook’s Timeline; Privacy Settings;  Add/Change/Remove Photos-Posts-Friends, etc; Basics of Twitter & Smartphones; Basics of Blogging, posting, commenting; You’ll Create Your Own Blog; Templates; Add Ons: Links, Photos, Slide Shows, Blog Tools & more   

WORD-CREATe GREAT LOOKING DOCUMENTS ~ LSC 068B-121, 8:30am-12:20pm, Saturday mornings, Oct 12, 19 & 26 - Three "3" 4 hour classes-reviewing the basics to open, create, save documents; highlight; cut-copy-paste, set & change margins; create letters, envelopes, labels& use clip art, word art to enhance documents, invitations, how to work with tables to create schedules, resumes, questionnaires & flyers & lots of printing tips  

FIND/ORGANIZE WHAT’S ON YOUR PC ~ LSC 068C-121, 8:30am-12:20pm, Tues& Wed, Oct 15 & 16 - Two 4 hour classes Using Windows Explorer to find what you’ve saved on your PC; organize your work, files & photo’s to find them quickly& easily.  Learn to back up your pc, photo & documents with portable flash & hard drives, memory cards and memory card readers.. Bring your laptop, camera and/or flash drives to class 

HOW TO SKYPE OR GOOGLE VOICE  ~ LSC 103-121, 1pm-4:50pm, Wednesday, Oct 16 - One 4 hour workshop learning how to use Skype and/or Google voice to make free phone calls & web calls worldwide from any pc or smartphone.. lots of tips 

PICASA PHOTO EDITING ~ LSC 081-121: 8:30am-12:20pm, Thurs, Fri & Tues, Oct 17, 18 & 22 – Three “3”- 4 hr classes to learn to edit & print digital photo’s using Picasa (this is free Google software); learn to upload photo’s from your camera and/or scanner to the PC& learn to order prints online; how to create a quick movie with music or a wonderful collage; use Picasa online web albums; use face& geo tagging& learn to update your edited photos to a variety of vendors for printing and/or creating great gifts - Bring your digital camera to class  

WINDOWS 7 & 8 OPERATING SYSTEM ~ LSC 100-124, 1-4:50pm, Wednesday, Nov. 7 – One 4 hour workshop helping you get more comfortable with Windows 7 & 8 and the many Features & Improvements (vs XP-Vista), such as Desktop customizing; Use Libraries to manage files; Jump Lists vs Task Bar or put taskbar back; Run apps; Shuffle wallpaper & screen savers; System Tray; Media Player; Alerts vs action centers & more  - You are always welcome to bring your laptop, but this is especially true if you are using Windows 8. 

HOW TO BUY & SELL ONLINE ~ LSC 101-121, 1pm-4:50pm, Tues & Wed, Oct 22 & 23 - Two 4 hour classes-Buy and Sell on Line, find what you want; searching, making travel arrangements, shopping tips, intro to online sales with sites such as eBay; eBid; craigslist & others: shortcuts & security tips 

internet and it’s many uses ~ LSC 071-122, 8:30am-12:20pm, Wed, Thurs & Fri, Oct 23, 24 & 25 – Three “3”- 4 hr classes covering a variety of internet tips & lingo, such as ISP, browser, blogger, hashtags; when/why to use F5 & F11; website basics, hyperlinks, email basics & advanced including how to send and save attachments, copy hyperlinks, reply to, forward and file emails, using “Google& Bing” to search web, images, news; translating to & from different languages; blogging and much more 

USE DIGITAL PHOTOS & TEXT TO CREATE & PUBLISH YOUR OWN BOOK & OTHER GREAT GIFT IDEAS ~ LSC 100K-121, 1-4:50pm Thurs & Fri, Oct 24, 25 & 31 – Three “3”  4 hr classes to Learn to create & publish your own book, using free book publishing software from Walgreens & CVS as well as blurb.com (for a book that’s copyrighted) using your WP skills& digital photos and learn in quantities as small as just one.  You decide: soft or hard cover, various sizes, all text, all photos or a combination of photos & text, story book or recipe book Bring photos to class (on camera or flash drive) 

HOW TO USE CLOUD COMPUTING  ~ LSC 045-122 ~ 1pm-4:50pm, Saturday, Oct. 26 - One 4 Hour Workshop to review and help you better understand "Cloud Computing" including Google Drive; SkyDrive; Apple Cloud & Dropbox-understand which are free & which charge; learn to "store/upload" your important documents, photos, music & videos in the "clouds" to access anywhere, anytime with any device..

Apples & Android Class Schedule... 

INTRO TO iPHONE (& iPods) LSC 040-123 ~ 8:30-12:20pm Tuesday, Oct. 22, One 4 Hour Workshop reviewing the basics & differences of an Apple phone vs a Smartphone/Android etc...  As with all Apple Devices, we will discuss customizing, adding APPS, syncing your information on all "i" devices, organizing your contacts, calendar, music, data-using your Apple ID and the Apple Cloud and many other features (This class is also beneficial for iPod users - Bring your "iPhone" or "iPod" with you 

INTRO TO iPAD'S ~ LSC 040-124 ~ 8:30am-12:20pm, Wednesday, Oct 23  - One 4 Hour Workshop to review the basics & differences of Apple vs. PC and review many of the basics features of your iPad - including the desktop, using APPS, maneuvering around, syncing your "i" devices with your Apple ID and or the Apple Cloud; organize your desktop and many other features  - Bring your "iPad" with you 

ANDroiD SMARTPHONE BASICS ~ LSC 043-122 ~ 1pm-4:50pm, Tuesday, Oct 22nd - One 4 Hour Workshop to review the basics of using an Android smartphone, including "swiping"; Wi-Fi and other settings; syncing with your email, calendar, contacts, "clouds accounts, organizing it all, accessories and many other features  - Bring your "Android Smartphone" with you 

ANDROID TABLET BASICS ~LSC044-122 ~ 1pm-4:50pm, Wednesday, Oct 23 - One 4 Hour Workshop to review the basics of using an Android System - whether it is a Smartphone or Tablet; including "swiping"; Wi-Fi and other settings; syncing with your email, calendar, contacts, "clouds accounts, organizing it all, accessories and many other features  - Bring your "Android Tablet " with you

ANDroiD TABLET ADVANCED ~ LSC045-122 ~ 1pm-4:50pm, Thursday & Friday, Oct. 24& 25 - Two 4 Hour Classes to review the more advanced uses of your Android Tablet - filing, syncing, downloading of apps, books and other daily services - managing photos and other aspects of your "cloud", organizing it all, accessories and many other features  - Bring your "Android Tablet" with you 

As always, if there is a specific class or topic that you would like us to consider, let us know..  These classes are designed to help you take advantage of all the new technology, so we are always anxious to hear your suggestions and comments...

Windows 7 - Using Speech Recognition

Before you run out to buy Dragon Speech or a similar software program, use the Speech Recognition software that has been built into all Windows Operating Systems, since Windows XP.  Voice/Speech Recognition is becoming common today in so many devices including iPhone, iPad, iPods, Android tablets and smartphones, computers, automobiles and other devices... So the more comfortable you get with it, the more you will use it with all of your devices...

If you haven't played with "Speech Recognition" yet, and are now using Windows 7, give it a try.  The program in Windows 7 is quite powerful and allows you to tell your computer what to do and you can also use it to dictate text into a document. 

Speech Recognition uses a special voice profile to recognize your voice and spoken commands, so the more you use Speech Recognition, the more detailed your voice profile becomes, which will improve your PC (and other mobile devices) abilities to understand you

As with so many things we do with the computer, using the speech recognition to give commands is just another way, in addition to using the mouse and/or the keyboard and/or

keypad.. 

Before you set up your Speech Recognition, make sure you've plugged a microphone into your PC so these steps will work.. Personally I think using a headset microphone; which is less likely to pick up background noise, is best when I'm using any speech recognition program to give commands or dictate into documents, doing voice recordings for slide shows and movies and using other programs such as Skype..

In Windows 7, click the Start Button

• Type Speech in the search box of the start menu
• Choose Windows Speech Recognition from the menu
• Note-if this is the first time you've used it, the Set-Up Speech Recognition Wizard will open and walk you thru setting up the system & settings. 
•  When you are in settings, it gives you the option to "Train your computer to better understand you" that helps it to recognize your voice.. 
•  In the Set-up, Windows also offers a tutorial that will help familiarize you with how to give commands and use the software - Take the tutorial - it really helps... 
• As with any new program or piece of hardware you are learning, remember to also use www.yotube.com, to find additional tutorials that will help you master just about anything..

Be patient and practice - like so many other things, the more you do it, the easier it will become and the more comfortable you will be...

Which Internet Browser To Use

TRY ALL OF THEM...

Today almost all public & work environment computers have all 4 of the major browsers installed on them.  This gives the individual users the choice of which browser they want to use...  Why?? Think of it as having multiple salad dressing choices in your fridge... No particular reason, they all do the same thing, it's just a matter of taste..

You will also find that certain websites you visit "work better" if and when you use the browser that they've built their platform on... so for example if you are visiting any website from Google - Gmail, blogger, YouTube, Google drive, Google maps etc. then you might consider opening your CHROME browser to access those websites.

Computers and other devices with Windows Operating Systems come with Internet Explorer pre-installed, those with Android Operating Systems have Google Chrome installed, and Apple Operating Systems have Safari pre-installed, but you can use any of these browsers on your devices - simply download them: 

• Google Chrome ~ go to www.google.com
• Firefox by Mozilla ~ go to www.mozilla.com
• Safari  by Apple ~ go to http://support.apple.com/downloads/#internet

What does hashtag mean?

You hear and see the expression everywhere - follow me on # and then the company or individuals name (or you hear follow me on hashtag then the company or persons name -  - but what does that mean....
 

One of the most popular questions we are receiving in classes and via email is this one..  “What is a hashtag”.. Simply put, it is the “#” sign...

“Hashtags” are used by quite a few social media sites to indicate a name to whom you can then send/or follow for messages & updates...  Social media sites using “hashatgs” are those like Twitter, Flickr, Instagram, Tumblr, Tout, Google+, Facebook and others...

For example.. if I said to you what are each of these next two phrases in red.....

www.anycompany.com – you know it is a web address because the prefix is “www”

Susie@anycompany.com – you know it is an email address because of the @ sign

And if you hear.....

#anycompany,  it indicates that you can follow/connect to that person or company's group of common messages by entering their #hashtag id on the social media site you are registered with... Yes, you also have to be registered with that specific social media site with your own #hashtag name...

Creating Slide Shows - Power Point & Picasa

Some basic Power Point Info...

WHAT IS POWER POINT:  Gives you the ability to create a slide show combining your photos, text, animation, sound and more… to make your information much more enjoyable.  Power Point presentations have been used in business for years, but today you see them being used at weddings, showers, birthday parties, reunions, memorial services and by groups & organizations.  Students as young as 3^rd grade are using power point presentations to enhance reports and projects.

POWER POINT APPLICATION SOFTWARE

Can be bought individually or it is included as part of the MICROSOFT OFFICE bundle.  The Power Point Application Software is always required for you to create and or modify a power point presentation.

POWER POINT VIEWER: This is a free software offered from Microsoft that allows you to watch power point presentations sent to you via email.  You can then save them on your computer to send to someone else, you cannot however change or modify them in anyway or create your own without the full Power Point Application Software Program.

ADD POWER POINT VIEWER TO YOUR COMPUTER: Go to www.Microsoft.com – on right hand column – choose Downloads & Trials, search for “Power Point Viewer” and when wizard opens up – choose DOWNLOAD NOW button – in a few minutes this free software will be on your computer – follow directions as it adds it…

CAN YOU MAKE SLIDE PRESENTATIONS WITHOUT POWER POINT?? Yes, use Picasa (a free photo editing software program from Google, if you don’t have it, go to www.picasa.com and download for free).  Picasa’s version 3, has both a slide show & movie making application to use and they are easy to work with.. For those with Windows XP or Vista, your windows software has a free program called Windows Movie Maker which works in much the same way as power point and the Picasa applications… and if you have Windows 7 or 8 you can always search for and download

In our next posting we will talk more about using PICASA to create slide shows.. 

Websites to help with rising gas prices

With gas prices climbing continually, it’s more important than ever to keep an eye on gas prices and for those who are planning a summer trip – you might want to more accurately calculate what your fuel costs will be.. Here are some websites that you might find helpful…

To calculate fuel expenses for a trip…

www.fuelcostcalculator.aaa.com

Cost of fuel …

www.gasbuddy.com

www.fuelgaugereport.aaa.com

For those of you with smartphones and/or tablets (such as Droid, iPhone, iPads, Goggle Nexus, BlackBerry, Kindles etc) consider adding these and other mobile apps - including AAA - to help find the least expensive gas and other services when you are traveling…

Remember to avoid getting gas when you are on or near major interstate highways and/or airports ~ as most of us know – prices are always higher at these locations…